Hello all. I am new to smoking and I am giving it a run with a turkey for tomorrow. I have a backup Honeybaked Ham just in case! I bought a new Bradley and seasoned it earlier this week. The bird (12lbs) is in the brine as I type. I was just wondering how much of the skin to remove from the neck and tail. I already cut off the large flap at the neck, should I hack the base of the neck out to promote smoke flow through the cavity? I was also wondering if I should use a stand to smoke the bird upright or just set it on a rack like all of the pictures that I have seen. One last question is whether to use the Bradley all of the way through or finish in the oven.
By the way, thank you for any help.
MNTowman,
I normally don't remove any skin. I seal the neck (fold the excess skin over the whole and "pin" it). What I do remove is any visible fat around the end you would normally put stuffing in. I may trim the skin a bit around this area depending on the bird.
Recommend you apply a rub (wet or dry) of some sort. I normally inject the turkey with other seasonings as well.
If your racks are flexing to much, you can use two of em. (Just set one inside the other and place the bird.)
DO let the turkey set out at room temp for about 30-45 min prior to putting in the smoker.
You can do the whole thing in the Bradley, or yank it when it's almost done and throw in the oven to crisp up the skin. Some find the skin is to rubbery when cooking poultry in the bradley.
Oh, most important....do NOT apply smoke for the whole cooking time. Most recommend about 1/2 the cooking time. You are looking at a 6 hour ISH cooking time (give or take, use the IT to guide you). I'd apply 2-3 hours of smoke at the start and then let it go in the Bradley until done (Again, based on the IT).
MNT, welcome to the forum.
On chicken or turkey's keep your vent 3/4 to full open. I keep mine full.
That will allow the moister to excape.
Your IT should be 165 to 170 and take readings in several locations (thighs and breast)
That smoke will find the inside of your bird.
After you smoke this thing you can get your money back on that Ham.
Here's you a cple of links to help you out.
Recipe site
http://www.susanminor.org/forums/
FAQ
http://www.susanminor.org/forums/showthread.php?t=481
Try this link to get your pictures going.
http://www.susanminor.org/forums/showpost.php?p=768&postcount=11
Have a great Turkey Day.
Thank you very much for the tips. I will let you know how it turns out. Too much of the candy coating missing from the ham for a refund ;-)
Everyone agreed that the turkey was the best that they had ever had! That includes my inlaws!!
Way to go MNT!
KyNola